


Isofonic Harmonies

by Hyrulehearts1123



Series: Isofonic Symphonies [1]
Category: Tales of the Abyss
Genre: Fluff, I'll probably add more tags later, I'm Bad At Summaries, Jade has lots of kids, Luke isn't Asch's replica, Not Canon Compliant, Sync Ion and Florian are brothers, abandoned, because literally none of the original plot was left intact after i got done with it, but at the same time he kinda is, but he loves them anyway, it's complicated - Freeform, like seriously, none of them are his, pretend that the canon never happened, to be re-written
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-27
Updated: 2016-12-28
Packaged: 2018-09-02 11:56:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 8,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8666530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hyrulehearts1123/pseuds/Hyrulehearts1123
Summary: From a dark room with no hope, to a home in a place they never expected, Asch, Laurel, Luke, and Astra learn that family can be found in the most unlikely of places, and a home doesn't really need four walls and a roof.A collection of 50 prompts leading into the most plotted thing that the writer's ever come up with. Expect insanity, tons of fluff, a fair bit of angst, and lessons on how to be a family, courtesy of Jade and his nine kids.





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> THIS WORK IS POSTED TO ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN BY THE AUTHOR, AND ONLY TO ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN. IF YOU FIND THIS OR ANY OF MY STORIES POSTED ON ANY OTHER SITE, IT HAS BEEN STOLEN AND POSTED WITHOUT THE PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So..... This is the start of the source of my insanity. I literally spent almost three months trying to plot out this series, and by hand no less. I've got a handful of chapters pre-written already, so within the next two weeks I should have most of them up, and I'll let you know when I've hit the end of what's already written out.
> 
> (besides, spacing them out with only a chapter or two every few days should give me time to actually get over my writer's block)
> 
> Eventually, things are gonna get really complicated. I'll be explaining some things as they come up though, unless they get explained in the second story. Either way though, it's been a lot of fun writing this so far, and I hope you enjoy the insanity as much as I have.

Laurel awoke to darkness. She could faintly make out shapes in the oppressive blackness of the area she was in, possibly due to the faint light that managed to break into the room through the crack between the door and the cold stones that made up the floor. Struggling to sit up, she raised a shaky hand to her pounding head, wincing at the rather large bump that she found.

A wave of dizziness flooded over her, forcing her to take several deep breaths so as not to fall over. She closed her eyes, unaware that a soft whimper had escaped her until she heard something that made her freeze.

“Dammit, is someone else there?”

The quiet voice asked, moments before the sound of clothes rustling began, glowing louder as someone moved closer to Laurel. She whimpered softly again, attempting to back away from whoever was approaching her, before another wave of dizziness struck, and she began to fall.

She didn't hit the hard stone as she believed she would though, as hands caught her, before aiding in helping her to sit back up gently. “Crap, I probably scared you pretty badly. Are you alright?” The voice from moments before asked softly, gently placing a hand to her forehead.

“Head….. Hurts….” Laurel managed, her words slow as she slowly moved a shaky hand to where the stranger's hand was and guiding it to the injury.

The stranger gently felt around the bump, perhaps attempting to measure it, before speaking once again. “How badly does it hurt?”

It took several moments for the question to completely register, and another moment before she was able to croak out her answer. “Kinda….Really….Hurts….”

The stranger cursed under their breath, before somehow managing to pick her up and carry her to another part of the area they were in. “Alright, I know that this is going to sound a bit strange, but I want you to count backwards from ten. Can you do that?” They asked, setting Laurel on something strange. It was softer than the stone floor, but still somewhat hard.

She thought for a moment, before beginning. “Ten….Nine….Seven….Four….Three….Five….One….” She trailed off, frowning softly. That wasn't the right order, was it?

Judging from the soft cursing from the stranger, she guessed that no, that wasn't the right order at all. “I need you to pay close attention if you can. My name is Asch, what's your name?” The stranger's voice was still soft, although it seemed to be barely hiding terror at her lack of concentration.

“Name….Laurel….” Her voice seemed almost far away, fading out softly as her eyes began to close.

“Laurel, I need you to stay awake. I think you have a concussion, but I'm not positive. Can you tell me where you live? Laurel? Laurel, wake up! Please!”

The stranger's voice faded as well, as blissful sleep took over, leaving Laurel to drift through the gentle darkness. After all, she could always tell him where she lived later. Right now she was just so tired….


	2. Haze

Everything was a haze for Laurel. Soft lights glowed beyond closed eyelids, not allowing her to fall asleep, yet she wasn't quite awake enough to open her eyes yet.

“Simply incredible! How in the world did you manage to obtain these specimens? Their Frequencies aren't merely similar like most twins, they're perfectly identical!”

“It doesn't matter. Are we able to move forward with the experiment now?”

“Move forward? With these two, we may yet be able to perfect the formula! I simply can't wait to begin the tests!”

“Then start. I'd like to have at least proof of concept before we move to the other base.”

“Right away sir!”

The voices drifted over Laurel, breaking through the haze long enough for her to hear one thing in particular.

Twins?

Before she could sort through enough of the conversation to potentially gather more information however, a harsh flood of pain hit her, stealing what little air she had in her lungs. Wave after wave of agony hit her over and over again, until the searing pain that she felt in her very soul became all she knew, and darkness overtook her once more.

  


_“Laurel….up….please….”_

Someone was talking. No, begging. But what were they begging for? Laurel had heard her name somewhere in there, but she had no frame of reference as to who they were, or why they knew her name.

Everything felt vague and distant, from the way her brain was refusing to comprehend what was happening, to the way she didn't have the strength to move anymore. She struggled to even open her eyes, fighting to show whoever she was with that she was alright, desperate to make the terror in their voice go away.

_“Don't….lucky….survive….”_

Another voice, this one harsh and cold, almost taunting in their tone. Something about this voice told Laurel that she was in danger, and the way that the first person tightened their grip on her only confirmed that.

_“What….do….us….”_

A harsh question, from the first voice. Anger barely masked blinding terror, as if attempting to prove that they were stronger than the other.

_“All….doing….science….sedation….few hours….”_

_“Stay….her….”_

_“She's….want….you….”_

_“Get….away….me….”_

Sounds of a struggle flooded over Laurel, before fading away, leaving her alone in the dark infinity of her mind. Fear began to build slowly, invading the blank of her mind. How long had she been left alone? Was there any hope of ever seeing her mother again? She had been home alone while her mother was at work when the strange man had come, and she hadn't even seen her mother that morning before she left for work, having stayed up late working on a school project!

There was a harsh, loud noise, and the sound of cloth moving, when Laurel found herself being lifted into someone's arms and held close.

“Laurel….alright….why….crying….” The person's voice was weak, cutting out often, but the message was clear.

Struggling to form thoughts clear enough to communicate in any form, she barely managed to get two words out. “Miss….Momma….” A hand gently brushed away some of the moisture on her cheeks, before gently guiding her head to somewhere somewhat soft.

“Don't….keep….safe….” The voice promised, and a soothing sound filled the room, calming the last of Laurel's fears, and she soon fell into a soft, warm sleep, and for the first time since she had been taken, dreamed of happier times.


	3. Dead Wrong

As soon as the door slammed shut once more, Asch ran to find Laurel. She was barely three feet from the door, unmoving from where she had been harshly thrown back into the room. Gently felling around her, he quickly found her knees and back, and just like all the other times, somehow managed to pick her up and carry her to the pitiful excuse of a bed that their captors had allowed them.

Sitting on the mattress, he pulled Laurel into a sitting position, with her head laying on his shoulder. He gently probed the back of her head, frowning at the size of the bump on her head. It was going down slowly, but it was still quite large, and he didn't have anything to potentially bring down the swelling.

Not only was the size of the bump worrying, but the fact that Laurel hadn't said a word since she had barely managed telling him that she missed her mother worried him as well.

He'd been through several classes on what to do if he was kidnapped. He'd needed them due to his status as the son of a Duke, but nothing about this situation was even remotely normal. His captor didn't seem to be lacking any money, and he hadn't attempted to get any political information from him, but had instead ranted about 'Science', and how he had found 'Perfect Isofons', a term he had only heard used in mythology.

A term to describe people who shared the exact same Fonic Frequency.

Their captors had called them twins as well, as if attempting to confuse them. After all, half of effective torture is confusing your victim, but Asch already knew that it was true.

He'd found the picture three months prior, an image of two small babies, both with soft looking red hair, one the color of blood, and the other softer, more akin to flames. Their eyes were different, making it even easier to tell them apart than their hair. The child with hair of blood had eyes of emeralds that shone with a fierce love for the other, and the child with hair of flame had eyes of ruby, sparkeling with delight at the flower that she had placed in her twin's hair.

He'd shown his father, not even saying anything as he placed the image on his desk before leaving, spending the entire day writing a letter to the twin he'd never known.

He'd poured his heart out onto the paper, first telling of who he was, and describing himself to his sister. He wrote about his life, his likes and dislikes, his dreams for the future, and how he longed to one day find her and bring her to live with him, so that they'd never be alone again.

Every night he'd write a letter to his twin, eventually building a stack of messages that would never be sent, never seen by anyone until he would be capable of finding her, and personally showed her himself.

Now as he sat in the darkness, holding the clearly traumatized girl in his arms, he found himself quietly reciting his letters to her, knowing even without their captor's help that the girl he held close to his heart was his missing twin.

He may not know her as well as she would likely know him if she were to remember any of their captivity, but if anyone were to think that they could tear her away from him again, they would have to kill him first.

Ever so slightly tightening his grip on her, he gently planted a kiss to the top of her head, repeating his promise to her as he did every time he would sleep or wake up.

“Don't worry Laurel, I'm going to protect you from now on. I'll get us out of here, and you'll be safe with me forever. Just give me a little more time to figure out a plan, and we'll be out of here soon. Okay?”

As usual, Laurel's only response was to gently nuzzle closer to Asch's warmth, breath slow and even as she slept. Hearing footsteps grow closer to the room they were in, he was forced to remove her from the comfort and safety of his lap and lay her on the bed, desperately attempting to cover her with the jacket he'd been wearing when he'd been taken.

Their captors would be coming for him, and he needed to know that she'd stay as warm and comfortable as possible while he was gone. After all, their captors were dead wrong if they thought that there was any way that the two of them weren't going to make it out alive.


	4. Out Of Time

Asch's mind was reeling. All he could do was sit there and stare at the strangers in front of him, trying to comprehend how they were capable of existing. Two pairs of blank eyes stared back at him, one emerald, and one ruby.

Just like him and Laurel.

The two across from him may as well have also been twins, but somehow he knew the truth. These two weren't each other's twins, but the twins of himself and Laurel.

Nothing about the situation made any sense, the only process that he knew of that could create perfect copies of another was banned, but it was the only way anything would make even the slightest amount of sense: The lack of a ransom, or questioning for information, the discussion of Perfect Isofons, even the way that the captors laughed at him when he swore vengeance upon him.

They didn't care about potential repercussions, they were too focused on creating Replicas.

And they had succeeded.

Not only that, but by leaving Asch and Laurel in the same room the Replicas, they were forcing him to make a decision. One that he had hoped that he'd never have to make, and pushing his plans far ahead of schedule. They wanted him to act, and act he would.

He wasn't the weak child that they thought he was, nor was he ignorant as they assumed. He knew that they were likely going to try to replace them with Replicas, and continue to use him and Laurel to create more Replicas, possibly until the day they died.

If he were to take Laurel and leave the Replicas, they would likely be subjected to the same fate.

If he and Laurel couldn't stay, and the Replicas couldn't stay, then there was only one way to ensure the safety of all at risk.

Get them all out.

He may be out of time, but that didn't change anything. He'll still protect Laurel, and now he'll protect their Replicas just as fiercely as he will his biological twin. The plan didn't change at all, just shifted slightly.


	5. Running Away

Asch ran quickly, pulling the Replicas behind him, and carrying Laurel on his back. He knew he was risking severe muscle damage from the amount of weight he was carrying, but seeing how Laurel was practically comatose, and he wasn't about to leave her behind, the risk was well worth it.

Branches whipped his face, and thorns scratched his arms and legs as he guided the Replicas around trees and attempted to keep them from stumbling too much. They'd already put nearly three miles between them and their captors, but it would be easy for an adult to catch them in nearly half the time.

One of the Replicas tripped though, bringing their progress to a screeching halt. She fell to the ground, barely managing to catch herself with her hands. Her emerald eyes filled with tears, which quickly spilled over, falling to the ground. Gently helping the other Replica to the ground, he removed Laurel's arms from around his neck before making his way over to the Replica who fell and pulling her into his lap.

“Hey, it's okay sweetheart.” He comforted, shushing her softly as he rocked her. “Let me see…” He trailed off, taking her hands in his and looking at the damage. “See? It's just a scrape. I know that this is kind of trial by fire, but you're doing a very good job of running for how young you are. Especially since you didn't exactly get a very good lesson on how to walk before we had to leave.” He started humming quietly, smiling when he saw the other Replica cuddle up next to Laurel.

Laughing weakly at the sight, Asch pointed at them, waiting for the Replica, no _his Replica_ , to look before speaking. “It looks like our brother likes our sister.” He hummed once more, finally beginning to relax. They'd been free for nearly four hours, and hadn't seen any sign of anyone coming after them.

He'd done it, he'd gotten them all out.

That knowledge firmly in mind, he leaned back against a tree, and finally allowed his eyes to slide close. They were safe for now. He'd saved them. They could afford a few minutes to rest, right?

Deciding that the answer was undoubtedly yes, he drifted into a peaceful sleep.


	6. Stars

She stared at the small lights in awe. She'd been asleep for a long time, and awoke to find the area she was in dark, with many small lights filling the sky.

She'd been scared at first, pulling at the cloth covering her twin before stopping, realizing that he would not wake up. She'd glanced back up at the lights, before realizing something about them.

They were beautiful.

She gasped in delight at the beauty of the lights, reaching her hands up in an attempt to touch them, and keep them for herself, but they were just out of her reach, so she settled for watching them.

The area that her twin had lead her and the other to was quiet, almost peaceful despite the noise that they had left behind before coming here. Someone had shouted as they left, swearing to find them no matter how far they ran. She didn't understand, her twin had told her that they needed to stay hidden, and not be found, but the other person had said that they would find them.

Making a note to ask her twin later, she paused her thought as she realized that she didn't know how to ask him. She supposed that asking her twin about the conflicting information would have to wait, at least until she figured out basic communication anyway.

A soft, barely there whisper cut through the quiet, breaking her out of her thoughts. “Those are stars…. They're beautiful, aren't they?” Her twin pointed towards the lights, voice barely there. “You still don't have a name, do you?” He asked, coughing softly as he struggled to keep his breathing steady.

Several moments passed, before her twin coughed again. “Astra. That's your name now. It means star in Old Inistan, and since you like the stars, I figured that it fit fairly well.”

Astra… Yes, she decided. That sounded perfect to her.

She climbed off of her twin's lap, ignoring the pain it caused her scraped knees, and looked him in the eyes as best as she could. Meeting emeralds that matched her own, she smiled wider than she thought was possible and nodded quickly.

Her twin smiled as well, and within a few moments, Astra cuddled up next to her twin, much like the other two were. Pointing up at the stars again, she smiled as her twin laughed softly, before telling her stories of the stars, their names, and how they gained their own names.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Astra's name came from the Greek word astéri, which means Star. It seemed fitting at the time.


	7. Silence

Arietta Curtiss frowned at the disrepair of Choral Castle. Technically she'd never been in a castle before, but she visited her Uncle's palace on a near daily basis with her siblings, and seeing the sorry state that the castle had fallen into was almost depressing.

Tying her rose pink hair back with a pale blue bow that complimented both her hair and scarlet eyes, she walked up to a group of men, silently pleased at the way that they parted to allow her to reach the one she wanted to talk to, her father.

Colonel Jade Curtiss of the Malkuth Military was a man that many feared, but to Arietta, her three younger brothers, and her baby sister, he was a father, and savior.

The Colonel made eye contact with his eldest child, nodding to his men before crossing the few feet between them and wrapping his arm around her shoulders, angling the two to where they both looked around the entrance hall.

“So what do you think about the place my dear? I think we could find a way to make it work.” He commented, smirking slightly as he gestured to the room.

Arietta tilted her head to the side in thought, humming for a moment before nodding. “It needs a good scrub, but I'm sure we can put the boys on that, and I'm certain that Anise would love to help me redecorate.” Sighing softly, she took a step to the side and looked him in the eyes. “I found this in one of the rooms, along with the remains of what likely used to be a jacket. It's likely that the owners of both somehow managed to escape, and possibly not alone.”

Jade frowned, glancing at the two items that Arietta had found. “You don't think that this picture and the jacket could belong to the same child?” He asked, looking closely at the photo.

She could tell where her father was coming from, but shook her head. “The photo looks to have been taken recently, likely no more than three months ago. The jacket was dirty and torn to shreds, but likely bought between a month or two before the picture was taken. Considering the picture was likely taken in the early spring, the child in the picture would still be wearing her jacket, and the one that she's wearing is styled differently than the jacket I found in the room.”

Jade nodded, seeing the points that his daughter brought up easily. He was about to ask for more details, when a soldier wearing the light blue of Malkuth ran up to the two. “Sir, we've taken custody of one of the men responsible for breaking the ban, but we still haven't found the children mentioned in their reports.”

Arietta frowned, turning to face the man. “Set up a perimeter around the Castle. We're looking for two to four children around ten years old, likely all with red hair. At least one of the children has red eyes, and is presumably from either Hod or Feres. If I'm right, and I hope I'm not, then two of the children are in fact Replicas, created from children who were kidnapped. Luckily, I was able to find part of a jacket that belonged to one of the children, and I can use the Ligar that I brought with me to locate a scent.”

Jade nodded at her idea, before waving the man off to do as Arietta had suggested. “Take me to the room where you found the picture and jacket.”

She lead him through the halls, before stopping in front of a heavy iron door that had clearly been added recently. She watched quietly as he examined the rather small room, frowning deeply as she noticed something she hadn't the first time around.

“Father,” She started, walking towards a dark stain on the stone that made up the floor of the room. “This is a lot of blood.”

Jade crouched next to her, face nearly unreadable as he felt the stain. “It's no more than twelve hours old. The lack of any viable weapon suggests that either one or more of the children were injured when they tried to leave, or that they somehow managed to use their captor's weapon against him if he had one. That or we may only be looking for three instead of four.”

With the grim possibility hanging over their heads, Arietta quickly grabbed the remains of the jacket, which still lay on the bed where she had found it, and took off for the Landship where her Ligar companion was, leaving her father behind.

As her friend slowly scented around the castle grounds for the children's trail, Arietta tried her hardest to ignore the tense silence of her father's troops. She was going to find all four alive, and she was going to bring them all to Grand Chokmah to live with the rest of her family. There was simply no other option for her anymore.


	8. Out Cold

Jade Curtiss did not like losing. Many would argue that he had successfully completed his mission, having found the source of the large fluctuations in the amount of Seventh Fonons in the area, and he'd even found the two children who had been kidnapped, but there was an undeniable shadow hanging over all of his men as they began the journey back to Grand Chokmah.

They hadn't been able to prevent the children's replication. They'd been too late to get the children out safely. They hadn't been able to find them, deep within the forest, for until nearly twenty four hours after they had escaped.

There was little that could have been done in order to make the situation any better, they hadn't been asked to investigate the fluctuations until a week ago, and it had taken most of that time to travel across the border between Malkuth and Kimlasca, but it was rather obvious that everyone wished that there was at least _something_ that they could have done to save the children sooner.

Glancing into the room where the children were still unconscious, Jade wasn't surprised to find Arietta asleep at the table in the center of the room. Softly smiling, he quietly made his way to where the teen was sleeping, and gently brushed some of her soft pink hair out of her face.

She was barely fourteen, yet she had taken up so much responsibility without even being asked: helping her brothers with their homework, making sure her sister got to bed on time, even marching a kid who was bullying the triplets to the headmaster's office, and demanding that he apologize to them. She fiercely protected her siblings, and was prepared to do anything that was required to keep them safe and happy, especially after everything that they had all been through.

But those tales were for his children to choose to tell. He wasn't about to betray the trust he had gained over the years. Lorelei knows that the trust his sons had in him was still shaky at best most days, and he would risk it enough by bringing home _four_ new children to live with them.

Silently dreading how to explain the situation to his children, he gently draped a blanket around Arietta's shoulders. At least she would be comfortable tonight.

He still had much work to do before he would be capable to legally take home his new children next week, but it wasn't as if he'd never pulled closer saves off before; he'd only had three days to be able to adopt the triplets, and that'd been finished with an entire day to spare. This would be almost easy in comparison.

And who knows? This development may even solve the issue of having too much Gald lying around.


	9. Warmth

The first thing Asch became aware of was warmth, and a sense of safety he hadn't felt in a very long time. Dim light managed to find it's way behind closed eyelids, and soft noise surrounded him, almost tempting him to drift back into the darkness.

But there was something preventing him from sleeping once more. Something that he had sworn to do, even if it cost him his life in the process.

And so he set about the task of opening his eyes, which proved to be a much harder process than he had anticipated. Either way, he was determined to keep his promise to his twin, his Replica, and his twin's Replica.

Forcing his eyes open just a crack, he was met with an unfamiliar scene.

A girl sat at a table several feet away from where Asch lay, writing something into a journal by the light of a dim lantern that sat in the center of the table. The girl had what long, pink hair that fell to her lower back, and pale skin softly colored by the pale orange glow the lantern provided. She was humming softly, quite clearly making it up as she went, and smiling as she continued to write.

Almost as if she knew she was being watched, her humming quieted, and she set the pen in the journal. She stood up gracefully, before walking slowly to Asch's bed and sitting on the edge. “How're you feeling?” She asked softly, her voice gentle, as if used to dealing with people who were scared.

Unconsciously leaning in when she placed a hand on his forehead, Asch barely managed to keep his eyes open. “Sore. Tired. Where are they?” He asked, voice rough from disuse.

The girl smiled, scarlet eyes filled with understanding that only came from experience. “I'd expect that much. You've been unconscious for nearly two days, and you've only just woken up. The others who were with you when we found you are here in this room. We weren't sure who's Replica was who's, but I'm fairly confident that I was right in my assumption.”

She glanced to Asch's side at this, almost encouraging the still exhausted boy to follow her gaze. It was slow, but he somehow managed to look to the side, breath catching as he saw his Replica asleep next to him.

Her blood red hair was pulled into a neat braid that was draped softly over her shoulder, and it was apparent that she'd been given both a bath and new clothes, as the shoddy rags that had been hastily thrown upon her when she was created had been replaced with a clean, cotton nightgown.

“Astra...” The name of his Replica- no, his twin, escaped him in little more than a whisper, and he smiled slightly when she moved slightly towards him, attempting to get as close as possible to her twin, even when in deep sleep.

The girl hummed softly, before speaking once more. “Old Inistan for star? It seems fitting for her.”

“The first thing she really took notice of after we got out were the stars.”

She nodded in understanding, before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, as if bracing herself for something difficult. When she opened her eyes again, her face was serious, prepared to do what she needed to.

“My father expressed a desire to speak with you when you woke up. He wants to ask you a few questions about what happened while you were captive, and try to use that information to catch the bastard that did this to you and the other girl.” She explained, and Asch sighed.

He'd almost been expecting that, nodding in resignation. He still wasn't entirely certain where he was, but experience told him that he was on a military vessel of some kind, and the way that the girl spoke confirmed that she had a rather strict upbringing, and likely had siblings by the way she managed to not only gently reassure, but also break the news that her father wanted to talk to him.

“When do I talk to him?” He asked, smiling softly when the girl extended a hand towards him. He took the hand, allowing her to help him sit up.

She smiled as well, tightening her grip on his hand slightly. “Whenever you're ready kiddo.” She stopped for a moment, before laughing softly. “We've been talking all this time, and we haven't even exchanged our names yet. I'm Arietta, I'm fourteen, and I've been living with my father for nearly seven years. He's a good man, and is more than prepared to help kids like us.”

As if seeing the hesitation on Asch's face, Arietta continued. “Father has rescued myself, my three brothers, and my baby sister from bad situations, and given us either a second chance, or a chance we were never given in the first place. I swear to you that no harm will come to you, or any of the others while you're under his care.”

Asch looked her straight in the eyes for another moment, before nodding. “My name is Aschton, but most people call me Asch. If you don't mind my asking, what's today's date?”

“Gnome Decan ninth, why?”

Asch laughed sadly, implications hitting hard. “That bastard… he had us for almost a month and a half…” He cut off, taking a moment to collect himself before starting again. “As of this morning, I am now ten years old.”


	10. Picking Up The Pieces

Arietta sat quietly on the counter of the kitchen, waiting until someone was able to help her. After the stunning realization of Asch's birthday had been made, she'd found her father and informed him that the boy was awake before heading down to the kitchens.

She had an idea, and she was more than willing to go through with it.

Finally, she was noticed, but not by one of the cooks like she had expected. Instead, a tall man with silver hair and gray-blue eyes approached her, arms crossed with a smirk on his face. “Well well well, why would the great and mighty Arietta Curtiss be sitting in the kitchen? If anything, I expected you to be in the stables with those foul creatures you call pets.” His snark was comforting to the teen, who slid off the counter and launched at him, throwing her arms around him.

“Uncle Dist!” She cried, laughing as the man lifted her off her feet and spinning her around. When she finally had her feet under her again, she backed away a few steps, glaring slightly at him. “Why didn't you let me know that you were on board?” She asked, pouting slightly before hopping back on the counter so that she was eye level with Dist.

The man sighed, leaning against the island across from where Arietta was sitting. “Sorry Little Ligar, I didn't board until Choral Castle, and with the children in such a condition as they were, there simply wasn't enough time for me to stop and say hello. But enough about me, why are you here, and not in either your room, or the room with the children?” He asked, glasses flashing in the light for a moment before allowing her to see through the clear lenses.

Arietta frowned for real this time, sighing softly. “It's the boy, his name is Asch, and it's his birthday today. I wanted to ask for a cake, or even some cookies for him, but the cooks are all busy preparing for diner.” She glanced around the busy kitchen, glaring softly at the chaos surrounding them. “I can't be upset at the cooks, but it still kinda sucks that I can't get anything to make today a little better for him.”

Dist hummed in thought for a moment, before looking off to the side and smiling softly. “Well,” He started, locking eyes with the teen. “We may not have the cooks to aid us, but I know for a fact that you're pretty decent at baking. I see a free space over in that corner, what do you say you and I make that cake and those cookies on our own?” He extended a hand towards the teen, assisting her off the counter and towards a slightly secluded area of the kitchen. “Shall we?”

Arietta smiled, grabbing two aprons from a hook on the wall, and put one of them on before handing the other to Dist. “Let's.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Arietta kicked the door a few times, blowing some stray hair out of her face absentmindedly. She carried both a cake and nearly three dozen cookies on a tray, and was struggling to keep the tray straight.

As neither she nor Dist had any idea of any allergies that Asch may have, the pastries were plain sugar cookies, and a yellow cake, made with the advice of one of the cooks who was able to step away from what they were doing for long enough to aid them in deciding what to make.

A few moments passed, before the door opened, revealing Jade.

“My my Arietta, why the sweets? It wouldn't be my birthday, would it?” He asked, opening the door wide enough to allow her into the room.

Arietta smiled widely, setting the tray on the table and walking over to where Asch was seated. “Sorry Father, it's not your birthday. But it is Asch's.” She pulled out ten candles, and a box of matches from a pouch strapped to a belt around her waist.

Asch's eyes widened, watching closely as Arietta carefully inserted the candles into the cake, and lit the first match. She started lighting the candles one by one, ending up using three matches before she was finished, much to the amusement of her father, and backed away once she was done.

The birthday boy stared at the glowing spectacle in front of him for a moment, before turning to face Arietta with tears in his eyes. “Why are you doing this for me?” He asked, voice barely a whisper. “You don't even know anything about me, and you made me a cake and cookies. Why do you care so much?”

Arietta's smile softened, and she cautiously sat down next to Asch, prepared for nearly anything before answering him. “Because I do know what you're feeling right now. You want to believe that this is real, but you're terrified that this is nothing but a dream. You're fighting to stay strong for Astra and the others, but inside you're falling apart. I've been in your position before, and Father was there to help me through it the entire way. Now, I'm gonna help you through it, because believe it or not, this is real, and you are free.”

Asch watched her for a moment longer, before flinging himself towards her, sobbing uncontrollably as all the pent up fear broke free all at once. The pinkette said nothing, gently pulling him into her lap where he would be slightly more comfortable. A hand settled on her shoulder, and she looked up to see her father smiling at her.

She smiled back, decision firm in her mind. She'd do everything she possibly could to help these children be happy, no matter what it took.

After all, they'd had far too much taken away from them already.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now, a series of highly fluffy events begins. Still gonna be a good bit of angst sprinkled in, but most of the angst is near the end.


	11. Pen and Paper

Laurel sat on her bed, holding her knees close to her chest. She had awakened no more than an hour ago, and so far there'd barely been a moment of quiet where she could attempt to figure out where she was, and what was going on.

Well, that and where her mother was.

Then the door opened again, this time instead a large influx of people trying to get the same answers out of her, a teen with long pink hair entered, carrying a plate. She slowly walked over to the bed Laurel was on, sitting down a safe distance away.

She smiled softly at Laurel, holding the plate out towards her. “Here. They're plain sugar cookies. I figured you'd want something sweet after all the insanity.”

Laurel watched her closely, before shaking her head softly. She didn't want cookies, she wanted her mother, and she wanted to know why her voice wouldn't work right for her.

As if almost sensing her frustration, the teen pulled out a book and pen from a bag on her hip, and flipped to a page near the back before handing it to the silent girl. “Here, use this to write to me. My name's Arietta, what's yours?”

She stared at the newly identified teen for a moment, before carefully unfolding herself from her ball and taking the book. Upon closer inspection, it was a journal with a well worn leather binding that was soft to the touch. The pen also was well used, and likely even had writing on it at one point in time that had long since been rubbed off. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Laurel began writing.

“ _My name is Laurel. I'm nine, almost ten, and I live on Feres with my mother. The last thing I remember is going to the park to play with my friends, and then I woke up here.”_

She handed the journal to Arietta to read, confusion and fear growing ever so slightly as she watched the teen frown. The teen merely shook her head at Laurel's gaze, handing the journal back. “It's unimportant at the moment. Are you aware of what amnesia is?”

Laurel frowned as well, nodding before waving Arietta to continue. Of course she knew, the older man who lived down the road from her and her mom had it due to his time fighting in a war. Seeing that Arietta was clearly wanting a written response to her question, Laurel sighed a bit and relayed to the teen what she knew.

The teen nodded, sighing softly as she did so. “Laurel, today's date is April twelfth. You've been in a comatose state for several days, caused by mistreatment during a period of nearly a month and a half in which you were kidnapped, and experimented upon in order to create a Replica.”

Laurel froze, staring at Arietta in shock. It just wasn't possible, she couldn't be missing a month of her life, there was just no way! She was going to give her friends invitations to her birthday party, and when she got back, she was going to help her momma make diner! How could she have been kidnapped for that long? Something like that certainly would've left an impression on her, right?

Now that she thought about it, had it left an impression on her? Had she been more jumpy around the doctors, or had it been her imagination? She certainly felt more jumpy now, with this new information and all, but that was normal for someone who just found out that they were kidnapped right?

Wait, what was she thinking?! She wasn't kidnapped, there was something else going on here! Arietta had said that she had been in a coma, those can cause memory issues sometimes, right? But then why did Arietta's explanation make sense the way it did? Why did it feel so right?

She was vaguely aware of the feeling that someone was hugging her, but who? And when had her vision gotten so fuzzy?

“ _Laurel, you need to calm down.”_

What was that?! There was a voice, but it was in her head? Had she finally gone insane?

“ _No, you're not crazy. There's a reason you and I were both taken,_ and I swear I'll explain it later, but you're having a panic attack and starting to hyperventilate. I know you're freaking out, and I am too, but you need to try to calm down before you pass out.”

Pass out? But she was just trying to figure out what was going on.

“ _I hear ya Laurel, and like I said, I will explain later, but right now you just need to breathe. I've got you, ok?”_

Just breathe, yeah, she could do that. Wait, why was it so hard to breathe? It was easy just a moment ago.

“ _No Laurel, it hasn't gotten harder, you're just realizing just how hard it's been. You're doing just fine, just relax.”_

But if she relaxed, she might fall apart again.

“ _If you do, I'll be here to catch you. I swear it.”_

Alright. She could relax, just this once. She had someone waiting to catch her, and keep her safe from her own mind.

  



	12. Library

It had been nearly two days since the last carrier pigeon had any mail for the rest of the Curtiss children. Well, it would've been addressed to their father, because it was to be sent to his home, but that wasn't the point.

The point was that Sync Curtiss wasn't entirely sure how long it would take for their father to return home anymore.

Not that he wanted to know or anything, it was just that Anise had been whining the last couple of days, and he really wanted to be able to throw the brat at their dad and let him deal with her.

But then he'd get in trouble for potentially hurting his sister. Well if there was ever a good reason to get grounded, that would certainly be it.

Pushing any thoughts of evil out of his head, the boy laughed quietly before beginning the trek from his shared room and the library. He'd promised the brat that he would read her a story, and he'd rather go back on the streets than see her be disappointed by something he didn't do.

He passed both of his brothers on the way to his destination, waving to them as they all went about their separate ways. His lips twitched into an unnoticeable smile as he passed the two. It wasn't all that long ago that they would cling to each-other even in the safety of their new home, silently terrified that Jade wouldn't keep his promise and rip them apart and place them into different homes.

Now, they were happily a part of the Curtiss family, despite the struggles that had taken them from Daath, where they were born, to Grand Chokmah, where they were adopted by the best friend of the Emperor!

'Yes,' Sync mused as he pushed open one of the heavy doors that lead to the library, 'Our lives may have changed drastically from back then, but our priorities are largely the same.'

He quickly found his sister nestled into a corner of the rather large room, throwing her stuffed cat/bear/vampire thing in the air and catching it. In an attempt to throw off her rhythm, he waited until the plushie was at it's peak height, before clapping his hands loudly. Anise was a trooper though, catching her stuffed doll expertly before launching at Sync, giggling loudly.

“You made it!” She cried, breaking into another round of giggles when the boy spun her around.

Sync's smile grew to where the small girl in his arms would be able to see it, perching her on a hip and poking her in the tummy. “Of course I made it silly! Who do you think I am, Uncle Peony?” He asked, loving how the small five year old giggled before flinging her arms around his neck in a hug.

“Nooo, Uncle Peony is Uncle Peony, and Sync is Sync!” She managed around her giggles, resting her head between Sync's shoulder and neck. “I got a story for us.” She said softly, yawning after she was finished. Sync hummed softly, making his way to the couch that he and his brothers had pushed into the library for times like these.

Whenever their dad would go out of town, Anise would have trouble taking her nap in the afternoon, so Sync would take her to the library, and read to her until she finally fell asleep.

Anise got her nap without too much fuss, Sync got to read some admittedly good books he'd never gotten the chance to when he was younger, and the rest of the family respected their privacy during the hour and a half to two hours that they stayed in the library. All was right with the world.

 

* * *

 

It was during the middle of Anise's nap when the door opened again. Sync glanced in the door's general direction for a moment, before placing his bookmark between the pages of the book he was reading, and setting it down on the arm of the couch.

He carefully placed Anise's head on a proper pillow instead of his thigh, and slowly made his way to see who had entered, thankful that whoever they were, they were at least being quiet.

Then he saw them.

A pair of redheads that he'd never seen before, both with emerald eyes several shades darker than his own, and both wearing rather plain clothes likely taken from on-board the Landship; white cotton shirts that were at least a size too big, plain black pants, and gray sneakers. Standard outfitting for any picked up along the way without any clothes of their own, as Sync and his brothers knew all too well.

After all, it had only been six months since they'd worn the exact same thing.

Realizing exactly who had entered the library, he casually made his way into their line of vision, taking quick note of the way that the boy in front of him pulled the girl ever so slightly behind him. Sync raised his hands in surrender for a moment, before placing a finger over his lips, signaling for them to be quiet. “I'd appreciate it if you kept your voice down, I just spent the last half hour trying to get a hyper five year old to take a nap, and she only just fell asleep.”

The boy nodded, whispering to the girl softly before glancing back at Sync. “Jade told us to and I quote, 'Explore and see who we can meet before lunch'. Is he always like that?” His voice was quiet, just loud enough that it would be heard by the others in the room who were awake, and quiet enough that there was no chance of waking Anise.

Sync shrugged, smiling softly at the new kids. “I can't be too sure, my brothers and I only got here six months ago. From what we've seen of him though, it seems rather appropriate.” Gesturing for the kids to sit down at a nearby table that still allowed him to watch over Anise while she slept. “He's a snarky, sarcastic bastard, but he's a good man. He got by brothers and I off of the streets, and gave us a home, and a family, and I'll never be able to thank him enough for that.”

The boy nodded, helping the girl into a chair before sitting down, across from Sync. “Good to know. He's guaranteed to keep my…. Twin, and the other two safe?”

At the question, Sync's smile faltered slightly, but not enough to be noticeable. Years on the street had taught him to only show what he wanted, and was more than capable of forming a mask that only his dad could see through. “Of course he will. Oh, I'm Sync by the way.” He extended a hand across the table, waiting patiently.

The boy finally seemed to relax, meeting Sync's hand with his own. “The name's Asch, and this is Astra.”

Sync's smile turned into a grin, and he lounged back into the chair. It seemed that it was the start of a friendship between the two boys.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry guys, but from here on out, the updates are gonna slow down. This is the last of the pre-written chapters, and Senior Year is kicking my ass something fierce right now. I'm not entirely sure when the next update is going to be, but I can say this.
> 
> I will finish this story, and it's sequel. That's right, there's gonna be a sequel, and it's probably going to be at least twice as long as this one will be. I've got some of the sequel written already, as this one is mostly background information, so if you want me to put what I've got for the sequel up, let me know.
> 
> In the mean time, I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, and I'll see you all as soon as possible.


End file.
